Auburn football: Hugh Freeze and 5 replacements for Gus Malzahn as Tigers head coach

His coaching roots are in the Southeastern footprint

Here is another interesting possibility. While Mario Cristobal has a good thing going up in the Pacific Northwest with the Oregon Ducks, he is from the Southeast and first reinvented himself as a serious head-coaching candidate as an offensive analyst on Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide staff. It would be something if he faced his mentor in the 2021 Iron Bowl at Auburn.

Cristobal has made Oregon a force to be reckoned with in the Pac-12, even though his Power 5 conference continues to let him down. While the Ducks will not play in the Pac-12 Championship game this year, Cristobal has the coaching acumen and better yet, the recruiting chops to more than hold his own at a place like Auburn. It might be a lateral move for him, but it is in the SEC.

Going from a top-two job in the Pac-12 to only a top-six job in the SEC might be a bit of an ego check, but it might be what it takes for Cristobal to lead a Power 5 team into the College Football Playoff. For him to ever get a team in from Oregon, the Ducks have to win the Pac-12 with one or fewer loss, as well as hope for chaos in a conference like the Big 12. It is a tough predicament.

This will ultimately come down to what Cristobal feels is more important. He can routinely have the Ducks competing for Pac-12 Championships, Rose Bowl nods and maybe the occasional College Football Playoff berth if he is lucky. At Auburn, he might have the recruiting base and the conference to take his coaching reputation to the next level. He could make the move there.